Using VMXNET3 Ethernet Adapters for 10Gbps connections

In order to get the best network performance between my virtual servers I will replace the NICs with the new VMXNET3 adapter, which supports speeds of up to 10Gbps. I don’t believe it is possible to change the adapter type for existing network adapters so I have removed the E1000 adapters and replaced them with new VMXNET3 adapters. Now this is what I see in the virtual machine properties:

Once the new NIC has been installed it will show a link speed of 10Gbps in the OS, as shown in the screenshot below:

Drivers for the VMXNET3 adapter are shipped with the VMware Tools and most operating systems are supported.

Note: speeds of 10Gbps speeds will only be achieved between VMs on the same host unless the physical NIC supports it.